The present invention relates to an installation for loading and unloading, especially of ships with package cargo goods, more particularly of loaded pallets, consisting of a gantry with a vertically slewable jib provided with a supply path and a discharge path for goods to be conveyed which, at its free end, carries a vertical conveyer which interacts with the supply and discharge path for goods to be conveyed and which, at its lower end, carries a receiving and delivering device for goods to be conveyed.
From the DE-A-1 290 875, there is known an installation for the loading and unloading, especially of ships, with package cargo goods or bulk material, consisting of a gantry and a vertically slewable jib provided with a conveyer which, at its free end, carries a vertical supporting rig with a spiral conveyer member constructed as an endless conveyer belt driven across guide rollers, the upper free end of which is arranged within the delivery area of the delivery side of the conveyer supported in the slewable jib, feed belts being fitted in front of it on the bridge platform, wherein, above the spiral conveyer supported within the supporting structure, a second spiral conveyer is disposed in a supporting frame run inside the supporting structure and rotatable around its longitudinal axis, which, on its outer wall, is provided with screw thread-shaped profilings which engage with mating profiles constructed on the inner wall of the supporting structure which, as well as the profilings of the pitch of the spirals of the conveyers are configured accordingly, of which the upper conveyer is provided with a transfer roller mounted in front of its upper deflection drum, said transfer roller being rotatingly driven in the conveying direction and supported within the supporting frame of the conveyer.
In addition, from the DE-A-26 22 399, there is known a vertical conveyer for the loading and unloading, especially of ships with package cargo goods, with a vertical conveyer path which, at the ground end, is connected with a stationary supply and discharge belt for goods to be conveyed and which is arranged within a supporting frame which, with its upper extremity, is supported on a stationary supporting structure and which, within this structure, is rotatable around a vertical axis and is provided with a revolving table for transferring the goods to be conveyed from the vertical conveyer path onto the supply path or vice versa, the revolving table being provided with a central opening for the vertical conveyer path to pass through as well as with a stripper, wherein, in the supporting frame above the revolving table, within the delivery or supply area of the vertical conveyer path, a belt conveyer is disposed which, at its extremity facing away from the vertical conveyer path, is provided with a plate-shaped stripper that is pivotable around a vertical axle center and which, on both sides of its extremity facing away from the vertical conveyer path, is provided with transfer paths extending toward the revolving table, and in which, within the area of the stationary supply or delivery belt for goods to be conveyed, a further stripper can be pivoted around a vertical axle center above the revolving table.
Both known ship loading and unloading installations have in common a travelling gantry with a horizontal bridge platform and a jib which can be raised and lowered on one side that is hingedly connected to the gantry and which, at its free end, carries a vertical conveyer, the overall arrangement being such that the vertical conveyer assumes a vertical position in every slewing position of the jib. This vertical conveyer interacts with a supply and discharge belt for goods to be conveyed that is arranged on the vertically displaceable jib so that goods arriving on the supply or discharge conveyer belt are delivered to the vertical conveyer or are delivered from the vertical conveyer to the supply or discharge conveyer belt when goods are unloaded. The supply and discharge conveyer belt disposed within the jib and interacting with the vertical conveyer extends in this case across the entire length of the jib. On the gantry side, further conveyer belts are assigned to the supply or discharge belt for supplying or delivering goods. If, over and above that, the jib with the goods supply or discharge conveyer belt is constructed longitudinally displaceable on the gantry of the loading and unloading installation, then a further conveyer belt is arranged for bridging the gap between the supply or discharge conveyer belt and the supply conveyer belt assigned to the latter, which further conveyer belt is, however, not arranged lying in the conveyance plane of the supply or discharge conveyer belt or of the supply belt assigned to the same, but opposite the plane of the supply or discharge conveyer belt and its supply belt in a plane located at a lower level, in which then, in the rotation area of the supply and discharge conveyer belt assigned to the same which faces this conveyer belt, transfer rollers are provided so as to enable the goods being conveyed to overcome the differences in height produced by the staggered arrangement of the conveyer belts. However, such loading and unloading installations are suitable exclusively for the conveyance of sacks and package cargo goods, but not for loaded pallets since, in order to avoid a displacement of the pallet load, loaded pallets can always be conveyed only in a horizontal or in a vertical plane.